minmax Baldur's Gate 2

[JRRNeiklot]

I don't think anything beats a straight kensai, but you could try a dual classed kensai mage. Take enough mage levels for a few stoneskins and you should be good to go.

 

[Gnome Berzerker]

I don't think anything beats a straight kensai, but you could try a dual classed kensai mage. Take enough mage levels for a few stoneskins and you should be good to go.

Do stoneskins (to use a 3e term) stack? Or are you just suggesting casting another one once the spell runs out?

 

[Dark Jezter]

Stoneskins don't stack. You just cast the spell again once it runs out.

 

[Gnome Berzerker]

I've been thinking of going with a straight sorcerer, or some kind of warrior.

I had been doing the kensai/mage thing, but I just didn't like it too much.

 

[Remus Lupin]

Agh. Inspired by this thread, I just tried to reinstall BGII, and got lot's of crashes and "missing file" notices. Does anybody know if Windows XP causes problems with BGII?

 

[Minsc]

Not that I know of. Check interplay.com for patches.

Back on the Min/Max subject: I've come to the conclusion that the Inquisitor is my favorite. I don't know if it's the most powerful, but it's up there. If you don't believe me, get your hands on that Holy Avenger sword; ther'll be no stopping you!

Here's my party (I swap out the most similar character to do certain character-specific quests; unfortunately this sometimes means Minsc, who is my favorite (hence the user-name):

Protagonist: Human Inquisitor
NPCs:
Minsc (Human Ranger) -- The other heavy hitter alongside the Protagonist
Jaheira (1/2 Elf Fighter/Druid) -- Some may prefer Cernd, but I like Jaheira. Better armor and you can romance her
Anomen (Human Fighter dualed over to Cleric) -- He can be annoying at times, but if you do his personal quests well, he becomes a lot more likeable, and he fits in with the party better. He's just about as good a Cleric as Vinconia, and the party won't suffer a reputation penalty with him in the party. He's also a good fighter, although the above 3 will do better in melee than he.
Jan (Gnome Thief/Illusionist) -- best Thief in the game. The spells are just a bonus, and they compliment Nalia well
Nalia (Human Thief dualed to Mage) -- best Mage in the game, save for that evil dude Edwin. Edwin is actually better, but he'll leave your party after your rep. gets too high. Nalia's minor Thief abilities stink, but they allow her to use a shortbow, and there are some pretty good ones in this game.

A more powerful party would probably be to have your Protagonist be a Kensai, Berzerker, Barbarian, or Monk, and to use the Inquisitor NPC instead of Minsc. But I just can't do the game without Minsc and Jan keeping me laughing the whole way through. They're so freakin' funny!

 

[Dark Jezter]

Protagonist: Human Inquisitor
NPCs:
Minsc (Human Ranger) -- The other heavy hitter alongside the Protagonist
Jaheira (1/2 Elf Fighter/Druid) -- Some may prefer Cernd, but I like Jaheira. Better armor and you can romance her
Anomen (Human Fighter dualed over to Cleric) -- He can be annoying at times, but if you do his personal quests well, he becomes a lot more likeable, and he fits in with the party better. He's just about as good a Cleric as Vinconia, and the party won't suffer a reputation penalty with him in the party. He's also a good fighter, although the above 3 will do better in melee than he.
Jan (Gnome Thief/Illusionist) -- best Thief in the game. The spells are just a bonus, and they compliment Nalia well
Nalia (Human Thief dualed to Mage) -- best Mage in the game, save for that evil dude Edwin. Edwin is actually better, but he'll leave your party after your rep. gets too high. Nalia's minor Thief abilities stink, but they allow her to use a shortbow, and there are some pretty good ones in this game.

Sounds like a nice party, Minsc. Here are some of the party makeups I've had the most success with...

Main Protagonist: Half-orc barbarian, half-orc kensai, human monk, human kensai/mage, or human inquisitor.

NPCs:

Viconia: She is, hands down, the best cleric in the game. When you give her the Crom Faeyr, she becomes a servicable melee warrior as well. Plus, she has magic resistance. Be careful when putting her in the same party as Keldorn, though, because Viconia and Keldorn will eventually fight each other.
Mazzy: Make way for halfling death! Mazzy is an excellent archer, and if you give her the Gesen Short bow, she'll never run out of arrows.
Edwin: The only unmulticlassed mage in the game. You need a good mage if you'll want to succeed in BG2, due to the fact that enemy mages will begin each battle by layering themselves with protections, and you'll need a mage of your own to dispel them. Be careful when putting Edwin in the same party as Minsc, because they will eventually fight each other.
Imoen: She's a decent mage, and she's also capable of disarming traps.
Valygar or Keldorn: If your main protagonist dual-weilds katanas/longswords, take Keldorn so that you can also take advantage of the Holy Avenger. If your main protagonist is an inquisitor who uses the Holy Avenger, take Valygar and have him weild the Celestial Fury and Equalizer Longsword. If your main character is a monk, make a choice between the two.

Here is a secondary build for if your main protagonist is a spellcaster.

Main Protagonist: Human, Half-Elf, or Elf sorcerer.

NPCs:

Minsc: Minsc is available from the start of the game, he's tough, and he is good with two-handed swords (and there are several good two-handed swords in BG2). Equip him with the Silver Sword (which can be assembled after exiting the underdark provided you have the components) and your enemies will never know what hit them. If you are playing Throne of Bhaal, Minsc can be replaced with Serevok, who is the single deadliest warrior NPC in BG2 or ToB.
Viconia: See above.
Valygar: Equip with Celestial Fury and Equalizer and max out his ranks in two weapon fighitng. If you have Minsc (or Serevok) and Valygar at the front of your party, you'll cut through enemy ranks like a knife through hot butter.
Jan: A good mage, and a good thief. Plus, his special crossbow bolts come in handy.
Jaheira: The only druid in the game worth taking since she has the Harper's Call spell, which can raise dead party members.

 

[LightPhoenix]

Viconia: She is, hands down, the best cleric in the game. When you give her the Crom Faeyr, she becomes a servicable melee warrior as well. Plus, she has magic resistance. Be careful when putting her in the same party as Keldorn, though, because Viconia and Keldorn will eventually fight each other.

It's been a while since I've played BG2, but I thought there was a way to stop Keldorn from attacking Viconia.

 

[Dark Jezter]

It's been a while since I've played BG2, but I thought there was a way to stop Keldorn from attacking Viconia.

Actually, there is a way to stop them before one of them kills the other. When Keldorn and Viccy start fighting, cast maze on Keldorn (it probably won't work on Viconia due to her resistance). When Keldorn disappears from sight, you can recruit Viconia back into your party. A minute later, Keldorn will reappear and he can rejoin the group as well.

After that, Keldorn and Viccy will have no more problems with each other.

 

[Minsc]

Do they still have problems after you've changed Viconia's alignment?

I don't like Edwin, and I find that Nalia can be just about as good. When you pick her up in the Copper Coronet, she's a damn good mage already, and her XP isn't split between any two classes since she's a dul-classed character, not multiclassed.